“For any highly selective school with a billion dollar endowment to say on the one hand that they are defending their right to give preference to generationally wealthy students, and put the other hand down and ask for more money for financial aid from the government, I think, conveys a lack of understanding of what’s going on in the real world,” [Cataldo] said.

“Lawmakers in Massachusetts are proposing a new fee that would be levied on the state's colleges and universities that use legacy preferences when admitting students, including Harvard University and Williams College, a highly ranked small liberal arts college. Any money raised by the fee would then be used to fund community colleges within the state.”

“Policies for legacies have no place in admissions that purport to advance social and economic mobility, said state Representative Simon Cataldo, who filed the bill with state Senator Pavel Payano.”

“Harvard also faces a challenge from Massachusetts, where lawmakers introduced state legislation earlier this year that would fine colleges and universities if they gave legacy preference or donor preference to applicants.”